NEW SHIP PREVIEW
Cables and wires hung from the superstructure like an untangled spider’s web, while, high above, the incandescent white light from a pyrotechnic of welder’s torches was testimony to intensive toil. Exploring this labyrinth, I encountered dark corridors that would soon be elegant passageways and steel chasms being metamorphosed into swimming pools. Most impressive was the three- deck-high expanse destined to become the marble- swathed Piazza – a nexus for dining, lounging and entertainment.
in her pillar-box red coat and matching beret came flooding back as I headed to Fincantieri’s Monfalcone Shipyard outside Trieste to see the final stages of the construction of the latest Royal Princess.
Representing more of an evolution than a revolution, the 17th ship in the impressive Princess
fleet is the first of two 141,000-ton vessels, which will be 20 per cent larger than the line’s Grand-class ships. Standing in the shadow of this new leviathan on a humid day in September, Rai Caluori, the enthusiastic executive vice president of fleet operations said: “Royal Princess is in many ways a prototype, but it reflects the design of our other ships. We didn’t want to build a ship that would be an ‘outlier’ and inconsistent with our fleet.” Entering the 18-deck titan, I got my first vision of this all-consuming hive of industry.
in the direction of the younger ladies in our group. Caluori was proud of this new ship and wanted to ensure we saw every nook and cranny. Raising his voice above the chimes of metal on metal and subdued commands in staccato Italian, his evocative descriptions and helpful interpretations from deck-plans on his iPad ensured we understood what was being created within the bulkheads and deckheads we traversed. From the start, a defining quality of Princess
A
Cruises was its cuisine. Almost 50 years later this love affair with all things epicurean has been enhanced with a proliferation of Italian-themed gustatory options. Today, Princess Cruises’ passion for culinary arts is best expressed in ‘CHEF’ - Culinary Heritage of Excellence in Food. This motto underscores the cruise line’s tradition of employing world-class chefs who create exceptional dishes using only the finest ingredients. This might sound a bold claim but the entire fleet has been inducted into the prestigious
t every turn, the architect’s detailed plans were being consulted by fastidious workers who weren’t too busy to cast the odd wink
ROOM WITH A SEA VIEW
Undoubtedly the headline-grabbing feature of this new 3,600-passenger vessel will be the innovative SEAWALK.
This cantilevered, glass-enclosed 60ft walkway will extend 28ft beyond the starboard edge of the ship and 128ft above the water on Deck 16. On the port side, a similarly cantilevered SEAVIEW BAR will offer cocktails – and vistas – with a difference. Taking the
design concept from the Grand Canyon Skywalk in Arizona, Rai Caluori pointed out: “This is sure to become a destination in its own right.”
Winter 2012-13 I WORLD OF CRUISING 65
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